Burning Ties
by Ashenessence
Summary: (Set in the alternate world of Aaa.) Flame Prince has just expressed his love for Fionna, and discovers that she feels the same way. The two begin to grow closer, but as they do, old threats come alive and our fiery prince must battle for the heroine's love. Can he protect her without hurting her on accident? Rated T for blood I'm not good summaries, so check out the actual text!
1. Chapter 1

**Hello there! Ashenessence here! I know I shouldn't be writing this now, considering there are still EIGHT weeks of school left. Whatevs. I had this on my mind and I couldn't hold it off, so here you are now. I'm not sure how often I will be able to do updates, so don't expect a certain date. **

**P.S. Hope you enjoy**

**-Ashen **

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"I can't believe you would do this!" Fionna yelled, tears in her eyes.

The shocked fire elemental jumped back in surprise. He looked into her beautiful, sky blue optics and made an attempt to wipe the wetness from them, but to no avail. The tiny beads of liquid stung his fiery finger, and he hissed, feeling a sharp, dousing pain shoot through his hand.

The upset heroine turned away, blocking her red, tear-stained face from his view. The flame prince sat there in his wooden chair that was protected with a thick layer of tin foil, pondering how to react. "I love you, Fionna," he finally said, feeling his cheeks rise to a temperature that was higher than his normal degree. He turned and quickly walked out, not wanting to see the adventuress's reaction.

As he was flying on a small pillar of flames to his kingdom, he heard the ground thump. He diverted his gaze toward the direction of the sound, hoping to catch the source of it. A giant cat with legs as large as a stairway assured him it was Cake, his heroine friend's sidekick.

"Cake?" he questioned, surprised that the magical feline had followed him.

"What did you do to her?" Cake demanded with a stern look implanted on her furry face.

"I don't know…" the fire being answered back.

"Well you must've done something to get her upset like that," the feline flicked her tail. "She's never been that angry at _anyone,_ not even me."

For once, Flame Prince was at a loss of words. He tried going back to when the heroine had approached him, her face red and wet with anger, holding up a sheet of paper with messy scribbling on it. He didn't know what it said, but obviously, Fionna had been offended by it. By the sound and tone of her voice, she had thought Flame Prince wrote whatever was on the paper.

"Do you remember anything about it, Sweetie?" Cake asked again, putting a soft tone to her voice.

"Well, she was holding up a sheet of paper with messy scribbling on it and she started screaming at me," Flame Prince answered back.

"So she must've thought it was you!" Cake snapped when she realized this. "That girl… she knows you can't write, right?"

Flame Prince shook his head. _Who wrote the letter then? _He questioned himself. He made a list of the people he had befriended in Aaa; sadly, the list was very small, but it made it easier for him to pick out who the suspects may be. He then came down to the primary suspects, Prince Gumball and Marshall Lee Abadeer, who had always harbored feelings for Fionna. The fiery prince doubted that the respectful ruler of the candy kingdom would do such a horrid thing, so his main suspect came down to Marshall Lee. Would the Vampire King really do such a thing? When he hung out with Fionna and the vampire, he usually noticed the scowls and glares that the raven-haired boy sent him.

Cake grumbled something under her breath and finally responded with an apology. "I'm sorry then, FP. I'll go have a sit-down talk with her."

"Thanks, Cake. You're the best," Flame Prince told her. He was glad that someone like Cake could help resolve conflicts. The feline gave him her goodbyes and departed back the grasslands. The prince watched her leave, and when she was out of sight, he continued his small journey back to the fire kingdom.

Once home, the weary prince simply retreated to his bedroom in the palace that overlooked the kingdom. He changed into his nightly attire and tucked himself in under the fiery covers of his bed. Closing his eyes, Flame Prince was plunged into a deep sleep.

* * *

"Wake up, your highness!" shouted a voice.

Flame Prince practically jumped from his covers, and once he realized he was back in the waking world, he blinked his eyes tiredly and yawned.

"As soon as you're dressed, a courier would like to speak with you in the throne-room."

"What does he want?" the prince asked, using his flames to conjure his regular, imperial uniform.

"I am not sure, my prince. He kept his voice down and demanded that the message only be given to your ears," the guard answered, backing down as if expecting punishment.

Flame Prince growled irritably at this, but he dismissed the guard without harassment. He left the room and stomped angrily to the throne-room. What message is so important that it should disturb his beauty sleep? As he pushed open the heavy, obsidian doors, a strange coldness greeted him. He shivered at the drastic change of temperature and his eyes widened when they met the courier's gaze. The courier was actually a spy from the water kingdom, the fire kingdom's ancient rival. "Haha, how easy it was to draw you from hiding!" the spy laughed, his eyes gleaming with satisfaction.

The spy jumped forward at him and pressed a wave of water to the prince's face. The prince screamed as the fiery flesh around his mouth began to sting and turn to an unhealthy, dull gray. The fiery prince jumped back and sent a wall of flames at the spy, a scream assuring him that he had hit. He grinned and sent another wall, followed by a spire of liquid flame around the spy.

After the smoke and steam vanished, the spy's body came into view again, this time as a small, pathetic puddle. "You will regret this! The water kingdom will come after you!" the puddle choked before it evaporated into nothingness. Flame Prince noticed the temperature beginning to rise, as well as the guards that had been melted on the palace floor. They automatically assumed position again and created new, smoldering weapons of fire and hard obsidian. They saluted the prince loyally and bowed before him.

Flame Prince nodded at them before leaving the throne-room. He wanted to go lay back in his bed again, but he knew that he would be unable to sleep, so he left the palace and headed toward the entrance of the kingdom's limits. Once safely away from the kingdom, he sat down by a tree and began to think of all that had happened. The incident with the water elemental spy quickly left his mind, but was replaced by the incident of yesterday. He dipped his head in sadness, wondering if the adventuress would ever forgive him.

His thoughts were interrupted by a familiar voice. "Hey, FP."

Flame Prince brought up his head to see Fionna walking towards him. With the sun outlining her figure, she looked beautiful to the fire prince as he admired her. "Hey… Fionna." He greeted the eighteen year old that had been cross with him the other day.

Fionna took a seat next to him and suddenly burst into tears. "I'm so sorry, Flame Prince. I am such a huge jerk to think you would've written that letter…"

Flame Prince grabbed her cheek and held her head upward to face him. Her surprised, sky-colored eyes were the last he saw before his lips met hers. The heroine ignored the stinging touch that the prince's fiery lips left on hers, and she melted into the kiss.

After a few seconds, Flame Prince withdrew and pulled his hand down from her face. There was a new, red burn in the shape of a handprint on her face and he felt guilty for letting his love for her cloud his reason. Fionna took a step backward and felt the burn on her cheek. She gasped, causing Flame Prince to feel even guiltier.

"I'm so so-" the fiery prince started.

"No… Flame Prince, it's fine. I never really knew you liked me… I mean… um…" Much to the flame prince's amusement, the beautiful tomboy began stammering. He silenced her with a quick peck on her smooth lips.

After he pulled away, he noticed the bright crimson creeping its way onto her cheeks. He chuckled slightly, causing the heroine's cheeks to grow redder. A small tear fell down her cheek and the prince gave her a confused look. "Why are you crying?"

"Because I can't hug or touch you without getting burned…" she cried. Flame Prince wanted to hug her, but he remembered that would give her severe burns. He felt his own, reddish tears fall from his orbs and he wiped them away.

"I will figure out a way to bring down the barrier," the prince reassured her. He stood up and the adventuress did the same. "Goodbye, Fionna."

Flame Prince left his friend to retreat to his palace and speak with his scholars. As he entered his kingdom, he was greeted by a small herd of fire lions. One of the lions, the largest with a glowing mane of fiery fur, came up to him and began to nuzzle his hand. FP chuckled and petted the overgrown kitten. "Hey, Leo," Flame Prince greeted the lion. The lion purred and rubbed against his the legs of his uniform. "Sorry, I can't take you out," FP spoke in the lion's language. "I've got work to do. Maybe tomorrow." The lion licked the prince's hand and gestured for him to jump on its back. Flame Prince did so, and the lion carried him to the palace.

"Goodbye, Leo!" Flame Prince waved as the fire lion left to join its herd. He opened the doors of the palace and headed for the royal laboratory. Once he reached the obsidian doors, a device buzzed off and he put on his hand on the scanner. _Gumball's work, _the fiery prince smiled. A low, rumbling sound emitted from the doors before they slowly opened, revealing a room full of bustling fire elementals. Once they looked up to see who it was, they immediately straightened up and saluted him.

"Greetings, your highness. The-" someone started.

"That won't be necessary," the prince assured him. He took out a small parchment from his pocket that he remembered Gumball had given him. On it were detailed drawings and pictures of a certain type of formula. One of the elementals took the paper and Flame Prince questioned, "Do you think you can create this formula?"

"It will be hard," the elemental stated, "but I think we can do it."

Flame Prince grinned and rubbed his hands together excitedly. The elementals began to look at the parchment (it was fire-proof by the way) and set out to work. FP left them to their studies and retreated to his bedroom. _Perhaps Fionna and I will truly be together_ _after this_, he thought.

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**How was that? I know it's not too long, sorry on my part xD. Constructive criticism is very well welcomed. Don't be afraid to bash me in the face over how terrible this was. **

**-Ashen**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey there! Sorry for the delay. I've been wrapped up in school business and studies, plus final assessments on close down the road. I hope you enjoy this somewhat short chapter, and remember: constructive criticism is always welcomed! **

**-Ashenessence**

* * *

**BOOM!** Flame Prince was blasted out of his bed and thrown against the wall. He grunted but almost immediately jumped to his feet. The door to his room was blasted apart, despite its obsidian composition. The walls were crumbling, and the stench of something toxic entered the prince's nose.

Looking to investigate, the prince pushed aside the damaged door and entered the hallway that led to the throne room. He noticed that the walls of the long entrance were crumbling as well, and as he neared the doors, the unnatural stench grew stronger. Once at the end of the hallway, the prince bolted through the doors, and they fell to the floor, having been devastated as well. The growing odor of toxic chemicals flooded the fire elemental's nose, and a large cloud of smoke blurred his vision.

Using his heat sense, the fiery prince was able to locate the doors to the laboratory, the seemingly source of the hideous smell and gases that were now abundant in the throne room. It took no struggle, for the entrance to the lab was wide open, the doors having been blasted away. Flame Prince stepped through the lab and he felt sharp pain shoot up from his foot to his leg. He gasped and cursed, clutching his foot, which was now dripping dark red droplets. The angry prince looked around for what had stung him so, and he perceived finally that the floor of the dysfunctional laboratory was littered with debris.

"Sire! Sire! The experiment went wrong!" a figure burst through the gases and clutched onto the prince's regalia. Having not the trait of callousness, Flame Prince helped the elemental to its feet and led it out of the palace, where the gases had not escaped.

"What happened?" the fiery prince asked patiently, not wanting to traumatize the hapless elemental with a score of questions.

"The… the… the experiment went wrong… We conducted the proper procedures and everything… The glass we used began to melt, and then exploded! The only samples of the elixir we produced are gone…" the scientist choked out.

Flame Prince groaned in disappointment, causing the elemental scientist to further back away like a kicked fire-wolf. The fiery prince softened his gaze and replied, "Do not hide, everyone makes mistakes." After hearing this, the elemental stood up again and nodded, but still looked doubtful, as if unsure of the impunity the prince has granted him.

The flaming prince wheezed, still feeling the smoke from the gases in his fiery lungs. The scientist handed him a small vial containing a golden substance, and he downed it. "Thank you," the prince gratefully acknowledged.

"No, your highness. Thank you for saving me," the chemist countered, causing the prince to smile.

The events from the laboratory explosion still lingered in our fiery prince's memory. He wheezed a short exhale, his throat still damaged from the lethal gases. Approaching the palace's stables, Flame Prince greeted one of its inhabitants, a flaming phoenix. The bird chirped and pecked playfully at his hand. He boarded the large bird and took ahold of the reins. "To the Candy Kingdom, Keegan."

The bird cawed in response, and flapped its beautiful, fiery wings. The bird pushed itself off from the ground and flew up to the top of the palace, the high exit from the large mountain the kingdom had been built in. The bird soared over the brightened skies of the grasslands and toward a pink-themed forest. Flying over the candy forest, the phoenix soon reached the Candy Kingdom.

Flame Prince dismounted from his companion, and dashed up the steps to the candy-made palace. He busted through the doors, surprising many of the royal candy denizens and banana guards. He ignored their bewilderment and stormed up to one of the guards. "Where can I find Gumball?" he demanded.

"Prince Gumball is in his laboratory, and he has requested that known disturb his work," the guard's husky voice replied.

"Can you show me where his lab is?"

The guard ignored this question. "Prince Gumball has re-"

"Yea, yea, well I'm a friend of his. He wouldn't mind."

Easily convinced, the guard showed the fiery prince to the candy monarch's laboratory. "Prince Gumball, the flame prince of the fire kingdom has requested to see you," the guard knocked on a slate colored door. The door was hastily opened by a man wearing a lab coat and a pair of goggles. The man's stern expression was portrayed by the slight change in gaze, and his pink-tinted cheeks had gone flushed with irritation.

"What do you -Oh! Hello, Flame Prince," the magenta-haired man removed the goggles and his expression softened. "I wasn't expecting you here. Come in!" He opened the door even wider and the fiery elemental walked in. The guard began to follow, but the man stopped it. "No… not you."

The candy-made made closed the lab door to a creaking shut, and Flame Prince had to cover his ears. "Sorry, it needs some oil," the man shrugged. "Anyway, what brings you here?"

Flame Prince sighed and gave the story of the lab experiment failure to the man. The man nodded and pulled his goggles back on. "So it seems you were trying to allow yourself and Fionna to mingle without harming her. A complex formula it will require indeed, and I'm not sure I can create the elixir in such a small laboratory as mine, but I will give it a go."

At these words, our fiery prince's disappointed expression lightened. He smiled, "Thank you, Gumball!"

Gumball smiled but FP could sense his tangible frown. He caught a glint of sadness in the other prince's eyes, and he knew what the pink-haired man must be feeling.

Seeing as the situation had become awkward, the candy prince turned away and began to gather the ingredients for the formula. Flame Prince left him alone to his work and left the palace hastily. He climbed onto his phoenix's back and the fiery creature carried him back to the fire kingdom.

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**Thanks for reading! I'm not sure when my next chapter will be out, but I'll try to schedule some writing time. **

**-Ashenessence**


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